In May I received a certificate in spiritual direction from HeartPaths DFW. What does a spiritual director do? For me, it means that I sit with directees and listen for where God is active in their lives and I lend my expertise to help people develop a better relationship with God through prayer.

We 21st century folks often fail to notice God’s activity simply because we don’t slow down long enough to focus on God’s actions. God doesn’t trumpet his actions or post them on social media, so if one isn’t quiet and still and looking for that action, he or she will often miss it.

One of the best ways to “train” for this is through prayer. There are a plethora of ways to pray, but unfortunately many of those traditions have been lost over the centuries. Thankfully, spiritual directors are “keepers” of those traditions. Thus, I have exciting news for you!

2 John

Happy Easter! Hope you are having an inspired Holy Week!

For those of you unfamiliar with contemplative Christianity, you may look at the title of this post and have this reaction: Say what?

It’s okay. A few short months ago I was right there with you. But, Lectio Divina is now one of my favorite ways to read my Bible. Thus, let’s get an overview of this prayer and reading practice.

First, it’s pronounced: Lexio Deeveena. Yep, it took me a while to learn to pronounce it that way, too. Unfortunately, it doesn’t really help because there are another slew of Latin words that comprise the different parts of Lectio Divina that you also have to learn. (Egad.)

Here are the parts, one version of their pronunciation, and a quick definition of each:

1. Lectio – Reading.
2. Meditatio – pronounced med-ee-tah-tee-oh – meditation on the reading.
3. Oratio – pronounced or-rah-tee-oh – prayer.
4. Contemplatio – pronounced cone-tem-plah-tee-oh – contemplative prayer.
5. Compassio – pronounced comb-pahs-see-oh – carry the word.